BIBLICAL pROPHECY
Probably the most crucial reason for the importance of prophecy and eschatological study is to be seen in the situation of the present age. The neglect of prophecy and eschatology has been a remarkable thing in the past, probably because most denominations spiritualize prophecy into moral instruction, and deny any literal fulfilment.
There are so many reasons that can be stated for the necessity and significance of prophetic study; in the theological seminaries eschatology remains a much neglected field of theological study and research. Furthermore, there is real danger in neglecting the study of prophecy. Neglecting the study of prophecy results in:
A. Disobedience to the Lord’s Will
1. To neglect prophecy is to neglect large segments of the Word of God which we are commanded to study and preach in its entirety (II Tim. 4:1-4).
2. In preaching Christ we must preach prophecy (Rev. 19:10). Prophetic truth throws light on all the other doctrines of the faith.
3. Prophecy is part of the ministry of warning (II Tim. 3:15; I Thess. 5:1, 2) and the ministry of comfort (I Thess. 4:13). Paul's example: Acts 20:20, 27.
4. To neglect prophecy is to fail to obey God’s Word and the command to treat the prophetic Scriptures as a light in a dark place (II Pet. 1:19).
5. It is the prime, though not the only, cause of Israel's rejection of Christ.
B. Disregarding and Neglecting Proof of the Divine Inspiration of the Bible
1. Read such passages as Isa. 45:21; 41:21-23; 46:9-13; Dan. 2:47; and II Pet. 1:20-21. God alone can predict; prediction is a supernatural miracle.
2. These texts settle for all time the truth that the Bible is inspired by God.
3. Prophecy is a confirmation of divine omniscience and omnipotence – as expressed in His prophecies concerning Moab, Edom, Assyria, Egypt, Syria, Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, Rome, Nineveh, Sodom, Gomorrah, Tyre, Sidon, and Philistia, and those prophecies concerning Christ, Israel, the Church, and the Gentiles.
C. A Change in the Preaching of the Church
1. If the Church neglects prophecy, she will invariably fail to conform to God's revealed plan in her preaching. It will be “convert the world,” “reform the social order,” “bring in the kingdom,” “do away with all war and lawlessness.” Think of the effort expended to bring about world peace. God’s purpose is found in Acts 15:14-16. The Lordship of Christ must be preached or man will try to be that Lord himself. Compare Hitler, Nietzsche, Stalin, and others.
2. When prophecy is neglected, the Church invariably turns to a solely ethical interpretation of Christianity, and begins to stress morality, instead of regeneration, new birth, and conversion. Never forget: Just the preaching of morals does not bring about morality.
3. When Christ’s kingdom and His return are neglected or rejected, the result is a social gospel. Men put their energies into communal and world reform. Preaching then comes from the Sermon on the Mount, and not on the fact and accomplishment of the Cross.
4. If the Church had kept in view the authority and coming of Christ, we should not be hearing a liberal theologian say: “Democracy demands a God with whom men can cooperate and not to whom they must submit.”
D. Lost Missionary Interest and Zeal
1. When the prophetic truth is neglected within the church, every human idea is proposed to describe the coming of the kingdom of Christ. If this happens, even the unsaved elements in the visible church will contribute their weight to the establishment of an anti-Christian religious kingdom on earth—a one-world religion.
2. The False Prophet, the “beast out of the earth,” will take over this religion and work with the Antichrist.
E. Prophecy Will Put Us to Work
From the positive point of view, a study of the prophetic Scriptures will accomplish several things for the willing heart:
1. It will bring us near to God (Gen. 18:17 and Jn. 15:14, 15)
a. Friends, not servants, are told confidences.
b. In prophecy God invites us into His deepest plans.
c. What kind of attitude is it, that cares much for God to provide our daily need, but will not listen to Him disclose His plans?
2. It affords a knowledge of world-wide purposes
a. What vast subjects are handled! The greatest in the world: the destiny of Israel, the Nations, the Church, the goal of men: heaven or hell, the reign of Christ on earth.
b. What a cure for narrow-mindedness or limited vision!
3. It brightens hope (Rom. 8:24a)
a. This element plays a large part in the believer’s life.
b. It has a relation to all he is, hopes to be, and will experience in realization.
c. Faith looks up and back; love looks around; hope looks up and forward.
4. It presents the words and speech of God (Deut. 29:29)
a. God has spoken in prophecy.
b. This is paramount. Whenever and wherever and however God speaks, it is our duty to listen and obey.
5. It affords the true perspective of history (Rom. 11:36). Sometimes in the midst of the affairs of life our vision gets blurred and out of focus. It is prophecy that gives us the proper perspective of history. Only in its light can we know our day (2 Pet. 1: 19).
6. It purifies the life (1 Thess. 3:11-13; 2 Pet. 3:11, 14; 1 Jn. 3:1-3). It is a mighty force to shape the life in conformity with God's will for our sanctification. God has provided cleansing by the blood of Christ in salvation and through the believer's experience. Prophetic truth is an aid to this end.
7. It influences our service (1 Thess. 2:19). All truth in the Word of God is meant, in one way or another, to influence or affect our service. If it has not, or does not, we have misunderstood it, or wilfully failed to apply it. If the study of prophecy has not and does not affect our service for God, we have not felt the full power and force of it. We have not permitted it to touch our lives.